Showing posts with label load testing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label load testing. Show all posts

10 June, 2014

Load Testing - An Effective Measure To Avoid Bugs In Your Website

First of all, let us know what actually Load Testing is. It is the process that is followed to put demands on a particular system or device, and measure its response. This type of software evaluation is performed for determination of the behavior of a definite system under normal circumstances as well as during anticipated conditions of optimal load. The process also helps in identification of the operating capacity of any application along with bottlenecks and technical glitches (if any) that are responsible for any degradation or hindrance of normal activity whatsoever.

automated load testing services
Let us discuss some of the load testing measures that you need to take in order to avoid the presence of bugs in your websites.

Early Start
The planning of the load evaluation needs to be started pretty early – during the designing phase. This is to ensure that you are not caught off guard during the development owing to any uncalled for incidence. The thumb rule is that you need to carry out your work with a notion that there will be issues and problems to encounter.

Do not make underestimations as this may prove extremely costly. The two most common underestimations that people generally tend to make are on the number of mistakes that are to be taken care of and the nature of the mistakes that will have to be rectified.

Defining the Environment
This is another step that needs to be taken to keep bugs at bay. You need to define the testing environment and for that you need to assess the kind of effort that is required. It is also imperative that a separate environment for the evaluation, suitable for production is created. It is to be seen that the configuration of the machine, its speed, as well as the set up are same as otherwise; extrapolation of performance becomes virtually impossible. One of the most important tasks is reducing the uncertainty and answering certain questions with some conclusive evidences. But for any comparable hardware, you can at the best make some wild guesses, which most of the times, are far from accurate.

Load evaluation of an application generally ensures that the application is ready to perform once it is live. Generally, this type of testing answers the following questions in a proper and conclusive way:
  • Whether the application will crumble when subjected to stress and load
  • Can all the pre-defined targets of performance be met
  • How many users can handle the website in question one at a time
Performance related issues are quite common. These issues emanate from the following reasons:
  • Issues regarding software configuration
  • Poor quality of network configuration
  • Poorly optimized and improper software coding
A proper load evaluation process saves the companies from financial loss resulting from poor performance of the software and the interruption of service it causes. While testing, it is imperative to take into account the following points:
  • Potential loss of the customers, partners and clients
  • Reduction of employee productivity
  • Damage to the corporate or brand value
  • Unnecessary expense of acquiring hardware that are not needed
  • Extra cost for fixing issues in case of any emergency
  • Setting up inappropriate contingency plans that only increases the expenses
A typical load testing software would avoid all these issues. Besides, it has the following benefits:
  • Low licensing fees
  • An ergonomic graphical interface, that will reduce the man hours needed for manual testing
  • Substantial reduction of hardware costs, due it its cross platform capabilities that allow the loads or stresses to be generated on a variety of platforms or domains
Hence, from the technical point of view, load testing provides a lot of advantages the users when it comes to recording the business actions that are performed within a particular web application with a view to keep the bugs at bay.

You can hire testers from top load testing companies in India who can help you accomplish testing within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide automated load testing services. If you would like to hire certified load testers from us or would just like to speak to one of our expert software testers, please reach out to us at Mindfire Solutions.

24 April, 2014

Top 5 Load Testing Tools Available That Testers Should Consider

Load Testing is the mechanism or process of putting simulated demand or stress on a system or a device and evaluating along with measuring its extent or quality of response. Load testing can be performed for determining the behavior of a system under anticipated optimal stress conditions as well as under normal circumstances. This type of testing helps in the identification of the maximum operating capacity of a particular application along with any technical issue, bottleneck or element that may cause the application to disintegrate.

load testing services
Now when it comes to tools that are used for stress testing, you will find a lot of them. However, let us discuss top 5 of them that are used the most and are considered the most effective.

Apache JMeter

It is one of the most popular open source software packages for stress testing that is extensively used to analyze the performance of various web applications. The tool is so designed to be integrated or embedded with the test plan. However, due to further development along with incorporation of a few value added features, the testing scope of Apache JMeter has further widened. At present, the tool can be widely used to test various functional performance of the applications as well as systems. However, you will need to have Unix or Windows OS for the tool to work.

NeoLoad

This load, as well as performance evaluation software is a JAVA application that is available in two different languages – English and French. It is primarily used to evaluate the performance of websites under trying conditions. The software actually increases the traffic to the website under question and thus evaluates as well as analyzes the performance under optimal load. However, for functioning the tool would need MS Windows, Solaris, Linux Operating Systems.

LoadRunner

This is a software that is developed as well as designed by HP and is extensively used for determining the performance of a particular system at the time of heavy traffic load. The tool is capable of creating as well as handling over thousands of users simultaneously. It can also provide information in respect of performance that is based on infrastructure. This HP product is comprised of several tools that include VUG or Virtual User Generator, Analysis & Controller, Load Generator. It is compatible with MS Windows as well as Linux OS.

LoadUI

It is a cross platform tool that can be used to measure as well as gauge the performance of the web applications. The software would allow an application tester to create as well as configure the tests besides allowing the individual to update while testing an application. The tool is designed to automatically update whenever an application undergoes any modification or change. It comes up with a drag and drop feature, that offers a virtual assistance to the tester. The tool is open source and hence can be downloaded free of cost. It is widely accepted mainly because of its ability to provide comprehensive testing facilities pertaining to different kinds of web based services as well as applications along with different APIs like REST. It is not a static testing tool and hence the tests cannot be created, updated or configured during run time.

WebLOAD

WebLOAD is another variety of cross platform tool (a tool that can be used across a wide variety of platforms) that is used for stress and load testing. The tool provides a wide range of information pertaining to the functionality along with the exact capability of a web application when it comes to withstanding and countering load or stress, especially over a long period of time. The software is specifically used when there is a high demand and requirement for stress or load testing. It is considered one of the most effective tools that is ideal for thoroughly testing various types of web applications subjected to heavy traffic load.

You can hire testers from top load testing companies in India who can help you accomplish testing within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide load testing services. If you would like to hire certified load testers from us or would just like to speak to one of our expert software testers, please reach out to us at Mindfire Solutions.

02 May, 2013

Load Testing: The Ultimate Way to Control the Queue

As the current trend goes, developers are into the habit of releasing brand new mobile apps with an aim to generate a queue for the users before a comprehensive support system can be built up for their app to fix evident issues. From the usability point of view, implementing a queue is indeed a great idea. It generates a lot of excitement within your users and also succeeds in adding that exclusivity factor to an application while the developer can deal with the scalability concerns in parallel.

However, let’s have a look at the other side of the coin. Having a queue may indeed be exciting for a few days but making users wait for the applications while the issues are being sorted out may prove to be a very risky bet for the developer or application owner, particularly when the switching cost for a user is very low. This gives a lot of scope to the impatient user to cross out your application and switch over to the subsequent one, without even getting the chance to appreciate the quality of your application.

There is off course a brilliant way to reduce this risk factor, and that’s where Load Testing comes in. It is the process of subjecting your system to high load and participation and evaluating the response. So, before making your application/app public, try to figure out the application’s performance against peak load conditions, maximum anticipated load. This will help you understand whether all the systems will synchronize in the proper manner and manage the burden of the entire user base.

Significance of Load Testing Services

The fundamental goal of Load Testing is to make sure than an application will register a good performance, in the production stage itself. With the help of load testing, you will be able to find out whether you application will cease to function or function inappropriately under heavy load and if the application is sturdy enough to fulfill the pre-determined performance levels. Moreover, load testing also gives a fair idea as to the number of users the website or application can simultaneously handle.

Some of the common performance issues that applications may face are the following:
  • Issues related to software configuration (for database, web server, load balancers and so on)
  • Problems arising from improper network configuration
  • Imperfect software code
  • Inadequate hardware assets
The sole means to identify these performance setbacks at the production stage is load testing, i.e., simulating a plethora of concurrent users. It also has a positive impact on the company’s Return on Investment by reducing the financial cost arising out of service interruptions and poor performance.

Generally speaking, this type of testing is most applicable to multiple-user systems, usually those operating on a client-server model, like web servers. But load testing can also be done for other software systems. For instance, you can always verify whether a financial package is suitable enough to process years of data and create a report accordingly or if a word processor can read an exceptionally bulky document.

Things to consider while Load Testing

  • The following things need to be considered in order to ensure that your load testing is successful:
  • The load goals should be clearly defined and measurable in terms of relevant parameters like requests per second, concurrent users, etc.
  • Specify the goals based on real-time scenarios. For example, when you are setting the load goals in terms of number of concurrent users, specify according to the expected number within a particular time span.
  • In case your application is brand new and there are no previous or specified server logs, take help from those involved in the company’s promotional activities and decide the peak.
  • Set the response time based on the user acceptance quotient.
Load Testing is the ultimate means to identify the shortcomings in your website or application before launching, to ensure that even the user who is the earliest in the queue, is not facing any performance setbacks. In the long run, this will help you rise above the low ratings and unfavorable reviews, and make your application seamlessly sail through.

We provide software performance testing services. Our certified load testers can help increase the robustness of your application. To know more how, please visit Mindfire Solutions.